Savigny-Les-Beaune "Aux Fourneaux" rouge Sans Sulfites Ajouté AOC 2021

A Pinot Noir of great transparency, bottled without added sulfur yet remaining clearly defined. François de Nicolay calls the house style neo-classical: little oak, precise fruit, ageing potential spanning decades. This bottling shows exactly that, silky on the palate and supple in structure.

The grapes grow in the commune of Savigny-lès-Beaune in the Côte de Beaune, where the de Nicolay family has been growing vines since 1834. The estate's 13.7 hectares are spread across twelve sites in Savigny-lès-Beaune, Pernand-Vergelesses and Aloxe-Corton. In 1989, Nadine de Nicolay banished all synthetic products from the vineyards, and her children Claude and François converted to biodynamic farming in 2005. Ploughing is done with four horses: Diva, Epi, Farandole and Gipsy.

Single-varietal Pinot Noir, hand-harvested and fermented as whole clusters, standard practice at the estate since 2011. Claude de Nicolay, cellar master since 1988, ages the red wines for 14 to 20 months in barrel, with at most 15 to 20 percent new oak. The cellar dates back to the 12th century and was built by monks from the Abbey of Cîteaux. Bottling is done without fining, without filtration and without added sulfur.

Fresh red fruit leads: sour cherry and wild raspberry, joined by a floral nuance. The acidity carries the slender body, the tannins stay fine, and a cool mineral note lingers in the finish. 12.5% Vol., dry.

Pairs with roast quail and pheasant breast, with rosé-roasted saddle of lamb, with chanterelle mushroom dishes, and with gently aged Crottin de Chavignol.

Demeter-certified since 2011. Unsulfured bottlings have been part of the estate's practice since 2017. A notable detail of the vineyard work: mildew here is treated with skimmed milk instead of copper sulfate, a method now permitted in certified organic viticulture.